Tuesday Tangents: The Pet Hospital Edition

• My kitty Anya had to spend the night at the hospital last night.
• When I called the internal specialist yesterday after getting his name from Anya's regular veterinarian, I was told to bring her in to the emergency room that same day.
• The specialty hospital Anya's veterinarian recommended is 70 miles away.
• It is actually a nice drive, albeit a little longer than Anya would like considering how much she hates being crated and having to go for car rides.
• The drive, however, isn't so nice when it is windy and pouring down rain.
• Animal people are among the best. The hospital staff were all very professional and kind. The patients' humans were too.
• On my visit yesterday, I met a woman who was picking up her dog. He'd been snatched by a coyote a couple of years ago and only got away because she came screaming out of the house. He's had serious health problems ever since.
• As I was waiting for Anya to be brought out this morning, I was going over the final bill and a woman commented, "It's a shocker, isn't it?" She and her husband were there with their cat who had just had major surgery. She and her husband told me they're already into the five digits cost wise and said they understood what I must be going through. We chatted a bit about our animals and wished each other the best.
• Anya underwent quite a few tests and had to have a blood transfusion because her red cell count was at such a dangerous level. She is doing well now and seems much more alert and happy today.
  
• She came home with two types of medication, one in pill form and the other a liquid. Here's hoping Anya is the rare cat who takes her medicine easily.
  
• I will be getting one of the test results back tomorrow and then more next week. Then maybe we'll know more about what exactly we are dealing with.
• In the meantime, I'll be taking her back to her regular veterinarian this next week to check on her red blood cell levels. If the medicine works right, she won't need another transfusion any time soon. That's the hope anyway.
• Blood transfusions are very expensive.
• The internal specialist said that if it's what we think it is (Pure Red Cell Aplasia), it will be a long road for recovery; but if the medicine takes, her chances of a full recovery are good.
  
• I'm kind of hoping it's what he thinks it is because the other options are not so optimistic.
• Through all of this, all I wanted to do was eat Dairy Queen Blizzards. I was good. I only had one.

Thank you for all of the prayers, well wishes and positive energy you sent Anya's way. Anya is my little angel, as you know, and it's been difficult these past few days.

Tuesday Tangents is hosted by Florinda of The 3 R's Blog

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© 2009, Wendy Runyon of Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved.
If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Review: American Rust by Philipp Meyer (& a Giveaway)

It was like this all up and down the river and many of the young people, the way they accepted their lack of prospects, it was like watching sparks die in the night. [excerpt from American Rust]

American Rust by Philipp Meyer
Spiegel & Grau, 2009
ISBN #978-0385527521
Fiction; 369 pgs

It's quite an endorsement when several book bloggers include a book on their top ten list of the year. American Rust was one such book in 2009. My interest in the book began before that, but, admittedly, became heightened even more as a result. Not everyone has been enamored by the book, however, which isn't all that unusual. I don't think I've ever come across a book that everyone liked.

Isaac English wants only to leave his hometown. After the death of his mother and his sister's escape to college, he is left to care for his disabled father. He is extremely intelligent and could have had his pick of colleges to attend, only the obligation of taking care of his father had set in--that and his strong desire to please his distant father. Billy Poe, Isaac's unlikely best friend, is a former high school football star. Poe has a penchant for finding trouble and a temper to boot. He never backs down from a fight.

Isaac is finally striking out on his own and his friend agrees to accompany him to the outskirts of town. The weather forces them to seek shelter, and it is there where their lives, and those around them, are irrevocably changed through an act of violence, a death. One will leave town and one will face trial for murder, all the while not knowing the other's fate. Their families will look inward and blame themselves.

My father grew up in Pennsylvania. Not in a steel town, but a small town nonetheless. It has seen many ups and downs over the years. Businesses have come and gone, people too. It is not thriving as it once was. Work is harder to find. My grandmother still lives there, but her children and their children have moved on. It's a beautiful place, full of trees, rolling hills, and wild life that a city gal like me can only dream of. While my grandmother's town is not as bad off as the Valley described in Meyer's novel, I still couldn't help but think of it as I read.

The beauty of American Rust is twofold. It is in the setting, in the landscape. Philipp Meyer's descriptions of a financially devastated and eroding community in Pennsylvania paints a very real and vivid picture of our times. Many of the residents in the community are hanging on by a thread. The steel mills that had once made the area thrive are now in ruins and the community around it has long been suffering as a result. The author holds nothing back in describing the poverty and conditions of the Valley, the hardships of sleeping on the streets, nor of the violent and tenuous conditions inside the prison system. Given the state of many American cities today, the economic hardships facing communities, the novel seems all the more fitting in this day and age.

Then there are the characters. The novel follows several characters throughout the novel, allowing the reader a close look at the thought processes and feelings of each of them. There is Isaac and Poe, the two young men whose story sets the stage for the novel; Grace, Poe's mother, who is lost and struggling to find her way; Bud Harris, the sheriff, a man who has always looked out for Poe, even when he shouldn't, all for the sake of Grace; Lee, Isaac's sister who is ever practical but has emotional baggage of her own; and Henry English, Isaac and Lee's dad, who is afraid of being alone. This format drew out the isolation each character felt and made their desperation stand out all the more. Their pain and guilt and feelings of helplessness were all very real, their resilience astounding. In getting this across, the author succeeded. Yet I felt somehow distant from the characters. I cared about them, sure. Wanted to know how the events in the novel would play out, and hoped for the best, but, still, something was missing. Something I can't quite put my finger on.

The story itself is complex. The situations the characters find themselves in and the choices they make are wrapped in moral ambiguity. These choices have consequences and the reader can clearly see the ripple effect of such decisions, including those made long past and the choices made near the end. Life is not black and white. The choices we make and their consequences are not isolated to only that moment. American Rust is a reminder of that.

American Rust is a strong debut for author Philipp Meyer. I liked the author's writing style and the way he framed the story. My overall emotion while reading the novel was one of hopelessness and sadness. There were times when I grew frustrated with the characters, willing them to make wiser choices, yet knowing they wouldn't because of who they are. While the novel does hold out some hope, however, small, it is a dark novel and will likely not appeal to everyone. It is well worth reading, however, if you are willing to take a chance on it.

Rating: (Very Good)


You can learn more about Philipp Meyer and his book on the author's website and on the American Rust Face Book Page. Be sure and check the TLC Book Tours website as well.

Source: Many thanks to the publisher and TLC Book Tours for the copy of this book and the opportunity to be a part of this book tour.

Philipp Meyer's TLC Tour Stops:
Tuesday, January 19th: Book Club Classics!
Wednesday, January 20th: A Circle of Books
Thursday, January 21st: One Person’s Journey Through a World of Books
Tuesday, January 26th: Luxury Reading
Thursday, January 28th: Ready When You Are, CB
Tuesday, February 2nd: Rough Edges
Thursday, February 4th: Bibliophile by the Sea
Monday, February 8th: Bibliofreak
Tuesday, February 9th: Becky’s Book Reviews
Thursday, February 11th: The 3 R’s Blog
Friday, February 12th: Beth Fish Reads

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Are you interested in a chance to win a copy of Philipp Meyer's American Rust? Well, here is your chance! The publisher has graciously offered to give away one copy to a lucky reader of Musings of a Bookish Kitty.

To Enter:

• Leave a comment below and tell me why you want to read American Rust.
• Be sure and include your e-mail address if it is not easily visible from your website/blog.
• The publisher's copy are only open to those who reside in the U.S. or Canada (no P.O. Boxes please).
• I have 1 hardback copy of my own (read once) available for giveaway to one of my international readers (it is important that you tell me if you are outside of the U.S. and Canada s0 I can enter your name in the proper random drawing).
• The deadline to enter is January 25th at 11:59 p.m. PST. The winners will be chosen at random through random.org and the winners will be notified by e-mail. The winners names will be posted below once they are determined.

Good luck!

**Giveaway Closed**

The winners were chosen randomly through Random.org. The winners of the American Rust Giveaway are:

Laura from Musings
Alice from Hello, My Name is Alice

Congratulations!

Thank you to all who entered the giveaway and left comments.

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© 2009, Wendy Runyon of Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved.
If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Sunday Salon: A Book about Reading & What I am Reading Now

In my August 10, 2008 Sunday Salon post I wrote: "It is my intent to stretch out the reading of this book, reading snippets here and there in between my other reading." And I certainly did stretch it out! Over a year later, and I finally was able to finish Leave Me Alone, I'm Reading: Finding and Losing Yourself in Books by Maureen Corrigan. This was that book I referred to at the beginning of the year, the one I found hidden in a basket of reference books. It was never my intention to put off finishing the book, much less to wait so long to get back to it. There's no time like the present, eh?

I have only read a handful of memoirs focusing on a reader's love of books. Sara Nelson's So Many Books, So Little Time: A Year of Passionate Reading and Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi come instantly to mind. There's always a risk to reading such books: running into possible spoilers of books I have yet to read and not being familiar with the books talked about, perhaps feeling a bit lost as a result. And what about all the new titles added to that wish list? Now there's a positive--or a negative depending on how you look at it. That would surely be the case with Maureen Corrigan's memoir.

Picking up where I last left off, I had no trouble jumping right back into Maureen Corrigan's narrative about how books have impacted her life and vice versa over the years. In the final two chapters of the book, she discusses the influence of her childhood and faith on her reading and how those early books she read influence her life to this day. She also goes into how her view and expectations about relationships were impacted by her reading, including those of a romantic nature. Books opened her eyes to an entirely different world and it lead her down unexpected paths. They also helped shape her values and ideals. On a broader scale, Corrigan talks a little about the changing nature of literature over the years, something I found especially interesting.

Corrigan included a coveted "Recommended Reading" list near the end of the book, which, of course I found irresistible. While several of the titles she mentions I have read and enjoyed (Jane Eyre, The Maltese Falcon, and Pride and Prejudice, just to name a few), there are many others I have not yet tasted and some I had never heard of before that are now on my wish list, especially from her mystery and suspense list. She reminded me that I need to dive back into Sara Paretsky's series and finally get around to reading Ian Rankin and Henning Mankell. Black and Blue by Anna Quindlen, Straight Man by Richard Russo, and Bleak House by Charles Dickens are among some of the titles that I must read.

My earlier discussions of the book:
Part One: Leave Me Alone, I'm Reading!
Part Two: Women's Extreme Adventure Stories
Part Three: Tales of Toil

Do you ever read memoirs about books and reading? If so, do you have a favorite?

At some point this year I hope to get to Nick Hornby's collections of essays about books and reading. I hear they are irresistible.

This past week I also read an intriguing mystery set in Italy--Umbria to be exact. It is called A Deadly Paradise and is by Grace Brophy. It's the second in a series featuring Commissario Cenni, and now I am anxious to get my hands on the first. I love a good mystery set in a country other than my own. This particular one delves a little bit into World War II history, although it is set in the present day.

Yesterday I began reading Umrigar Thrity's The Weight of Heaven, a book I have been wanting to get to since I first heard that it had been published. It is about a couple who lost their child to death and are trying to re-establish their lives. I jumped at the chance to be a part of the TLC Virtual Book Tour when I saw it coming around. I have read two books by Umrigar before, both very good, and am anxious to read more by this great author. There will be a giveaway of The Weight of Heaven (I have an extra copy since I bought my own) so be sure and visit on my tour date (February 1st) for a chance to win.

Speaking of giveaways, tomorrow I will be posting my review of American Rust by Philipp Meyer along with a giveaway of Meyer's book. I have two copies for giveaway, one for U.S. and Canadian residents from the publisher, and the other my own copy of the book that I will be giving away to someone outside of the U.S. and Canada. I hope you will stop by!

I am determined to read a Sarah Waters novel this year as so many readers have sung her praises. The question then became, where to begin? I put it to you to help me decide which book I should start with of all her novels. Many thanks to each of you who participated in the survey.

The results:
Affinity - 4 votes
Fingersmith - 20 votes
The Little Stranger - 14 votes
The Night Watch - 3 votes
Tipping the Velvet - 7 votes

Fingersmith is the clear winner and seemed to get the most praise even on Twitter when I mentioned my survey there. I am looking forward to reading Fingersmith later this year and seeing what all the fuss is about. To those who voted for the other books, this doesn't mean I won't read those at some point in the future as well. Just that I am starting with Fingersmith.

Good news! To me anyway. On a whim I put my name in for a chance to win a bookcase over at Myckyee's BookBound. And I won! The bookcase (from CSN Office Furniture) arrived in the mail the end of last week. I have not yet had a chance to put it up (still deciding exactly where it will go), but already have the books to fill it. I will be sure and take photos of before and after so you can see how it looks.

On the not so good front (and non-book related), Anya is having serious health problems at the moment, and we're waiting for the final test results to come back to see how to proceed with treatment. She's a real trooper and is hanging in there. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. Thank you.

Edited to add: The veterinarian called this morning as promised. There's still more testing in store for Anya, unfortunately (including a possible bone marrow biopsy) but we're getting closer to finding the root cause. I truly appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers.

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© 2009, Wendy Runyon of Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved.
If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Sunday Salon: Christmas Loot, First and Last Books of the Year & A Blogging Break

Now that 2010 is here, life is will soon be falling back into its regular routine. The last couple of days I have been busy reading all the detailed wrap up posts for 2009. It's one of my favorite times of year in the blogging community. I especially enjoy reading everyone's lists of their favorite books read in the year. There is always quite a variety and the occasional book I forgot to add to my wish list when the blogger first reviewed it.

I was remiss in telling you about the books I found wrapped and waiting for me on Christmas morning. It somehow got lost in the end of the year frenzy. Santa (Anjin) must have taken a peek at my wish list. He gave me:

The Man Who Loved Books Too Much: The True Story of a Thief, a Detective, and a World of Literary Obsession by Allison Hoover Bartlett
Columbine by Dave Cullen
The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane by Katherine Howe
Drood by Dan Simmons

I also received several bookstore gift cards, which you can bet will be put to good use. In fact, the one from my brother-in-law is already spent:

John Green's An Abundance of Katherines (Raidergirl from An Adventure in Reading is to blame for this one as I got it based on her high praise)
Wally Lamb's Wishin' and Hopin': A Christmas Story (a little late for the Christmas holiday, I know, but it was marked down considerably and I do adore Wally Lamb)

Anjin also received a few books in his stocking this year (which I will no doubt be reading as well):

U is for Undertow by Sue Grafton
Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
Sweet Thursday by John Steinbeck

I was cleaning out a basket of reference books (medical phone numbers, the car manual, etc) and discovered a book I had misplaced the year before last (I'd wondered where it went!). My post card, just a little over half way through, is still in it, marking the place I stopped. Fortunately, it is one of those essay/memoir type books that does not leave the reader hanging at the end of the chapter. I considered trying to finish it before 2010 began, but it wasn't meant to be. I hope to pick up where I left with that one in the near future.

I did at least finally finish reading Jhumpa Lahiri's The Interpreter of Maladies, capping off 2009. I enjoyed many of the stories, some more than others. Jhumpa Lahiri is a gifted writer and is able to get across the emotions of her characters without being obvious. I jotted down notes on each story and will be posting them throughout the early part of this year.

Just yesterday I began reading my first book of the year, Philipp Meyer's American Rust, which I'm reading for an upcoming book tour. I was happy to see that it made many of your lists of favorite books read this past year. Set in an old steel town in Pennsylvania that's fallen on hard times, the novel follows two young men, friends, whose lives are irrevocably changed by an act of violence. The writing is harsh and beautiful. I am looking forward to reading more of it today.

What was the last book you finished in 2009?
What book did you start 2010 off with?

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It has become my tradition to take a brief blogging break at the beginning of the year. It's a bit of a relief after that year end rush to get everything done. I am looking forward to a year filled with good books and discussions.

Enjoy the start of the New Year and Happy Reading!

Is it any wonder why changing the sheets is not so easy to do at my house?

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© 2009, Wendy Runyon of Musings oft a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved.
If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

War Through the Generations: Vietnam War Challenge

It never really crossed my mind to give up the War Through the Generations Challenge, even after I made the decision to take a reading challenge hiatus. While a new challenge is starting up, in my mind, it is just a part of the bigger whole, and therefore, not really a separate challenge. I was eager to see what war we would be reading about next. Would it be the American Civil War? I could certainly use a challenge for that one. I have quite a few books that would fit into that category. World War I would do just as nicely too. When I saw that the focus of 2010 will be the Vietnam War, I knew I would join in. This one is too close to home not to.

There was a time when I was a daddy's girl. My father took me to my first ballet. I remember dressing up, so proud to be wearing my "nylons" (tan tights). We had dinner, just the two of us, at a Mexican restaurant before the show. I was beyond thrilled. We saw one of my favorite fairy tales, Sleeping Beauty. It is a memory I hold close to my heart. My father is a book lover and has a massive collection of books. Is it any surprise then that I followed in his footsteps?

My father has a love for history, including war history. I'm sure that's in part where my interest in the subject came from as well. World War II is a special favorite for both of us. Then there is the Vietnam War.

My dad is a Vietnam Veteran. He was an enlisted man, having joined the Marine Corps right out of high school. His time in the war was a part of his life he never talked about, other than a funny story here and there. I knew it haunted him. I could see it in his eyes. I longed to know that part of him, to understand what he went through. As a result, I began reading as much as I could about the war, and even watched quite a few movies based on the conflict. As an adult, I have a better understanding of why he kept that part of his life closed off from me.

My personal goal is to read at least five (5) books related to the Vietnam War. Anna and Serena have graciously agreed that watching a movie related to the Vietnam War may count towards this challenge too. I may have to take them up on that idea!

Tentative Reading Ideas for the Vietnam War Challenge:
The Things They Carried by Time O'Brien
Dragon House by John Shors
Paco’s Story by Larry Heinneman (challenge group read selection)
Hearts in Atlantis by Stephen King
Novel Without a Name by Duong Thu Huong
The Quiet American by Graham Greene
The Lotus Eaters by Tatjana Soli

I'd love to hear of any titles relating to the Vietnam War that you might recommend. Are you participating in the challenge? What will you be reading?

About the Vietnam War Challenge:

The 2010 War Through the Generations reading challenge will focus on The Vietnam War (1959-1975), which is technically a Cold War military conflict and is sometimes referred to as the Second Indochina War.

The fighting occurred in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam and relates to the rise of Communism in Asia following the defeat of the French, who had colonized the region, during WWII.

The challenge will run from January 1, 2010, through December 31, 2010.

Rules:

This year you have options when reading your fiction, nonfiction, graphic novels, etc. with the Vietnam War as the primary or secondary theme.

Books can take place before, during, or after the war. Books from other challenges count so long as they meet the above criteria.

Dip: Read 5 books in any genre with the Vietnam War as a primary or secondary theme.

Wade: Read 6-10 books in any genre with the Vietnam War as a primary or secondary theme.

Swim: Read 11 or more books in any genre with the Vietnam War as a primary or secondary theme.

The War Through the Generations Challenges are hosted by Anna and Serena. For more information about the Vietnam War Challenge or to sign up visit the challenge website. The challenge website has a great list of recommendations as well, a feature that comes in mighty handy for me!

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© 2009, Wendy Runyon of Musings of a Bookish Kitty. All Rights Reserved.
If you're reading this on a site other than Musings of a Bookish Kitty or Wendy's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.